We’re getting deep into awards season in the spirits industry. This week noted Bourbon reviewer Fred Minnick dropped the medals from his spirit’s awards, the Ascot Awards — named after Minnick’s signature neckwear. Below, I’m going to call out every bourbon that you can actually (maybe) find that won a coveted “Double Platinum” award.

Before I get to that, a few background notes. The Ascot Awards are their own thing with a unique set of judges (offering a unique POV). The medals are “Honorable Mention” for spirits that meet the minimum standard. From there, there’s a point system based on 100 points — hinged on appearance, aroma, taste, and finish — that denotes a “Gold,” “Platinum,” and “Double Platinum” medal. Skipping to the end of the blind tasting panels, expressions that received top marks from all the judges at the table earn the “Double Platinum,” which is similar to how it works at the SF World Spirits Competition. Likewise, the “Double Platinum” medalist are then sent to finals where a “Best in Class” winner is blindly chosen.

Long story short (too late), the Double Platinum winning bourbons are the prime cuts from the hundreds of entries the judges at the Ascot Awards blindly taste. To that end, I’m calling out 45 of the Double Platinum bourbon winners. I’ve narrowed these down to bottles you might actually be able to get. That means that I skipped the private club and individual store barrel picks. Look, unless you live next to a random liquor store that got the barrel pick or are in a random club that did, you’re never getting those bottles. I kept this focused on bottles that you may be able to find (for a price at either a high-end liquor store or Whiskey bar). I also filled in as many Tasting Notes as I could but relied on the distillery/bottler/blender or Ascot Award notes where I couldn’t.

Also Read: The Top 5 UPROXX Bourbon Posts Of The Last Six Months

• The 50 Best Bourbon Whiskeys Of 2021, Ranked
• Every Winning Bourbon From Our 2021 Taste Tests, Blind Tasted And Re-Ranked
• The 100 Best Whiskeys Our Head Drinks Writer Tasted In 2021
• We Blind Tasted A Whole Bunch Of $30-60 Bourbons To See If Any Could Beat Weller
• The Best Ten-Year-Old Bourbon Whiskeys, Tasted Blind And Ranked

15 Stars Timeless Reserve 14-Year-Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

ABV: 51.5%

Average Price: Limited Availability

The Whiskey:

15 Stars bourbon is a bit of an outlier. The whiskey is a blend of old sourced barrels of bourbon from Bardstown, Kentucky. The whiskey then spends 14 years in the barrel before proofing and bottling.

Tasting Notes (from the blender):

“On the nose, an indulgent bouquet of butterscotch and maple is highlighted by roasted nuts and tobacco. Dark chocolate and molasses complement cream and vanilla to create an incredibly rich mouthfeel. Dark chocolate carries over from the palate with initial notes of oak and coffee followed by a bold and enduring hazelnut finish.”

Bottom Line:

This label has been popping up a lot over the last year or so. Color me intrigued.

15 Stars 7 & 15-Year Private Stock Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

ABV: 53.5%

Average Price: Coming Soon

The Whiskey:

As with the above, this is a sourced bourbon. In this case, it’s a blend of seven and 15-year-old barrels with a fairly accessible yet bold proof of 107.

Tasting Notes (from the blender):

“NOSE: On the nose, the fresh scent of cinnamon, rose petals, and apricot rest on rich maple and oak. PALATE: Citrus and spice form an inviting balance with caramel and almonds to produce a satisfyingly round palate. FINISH: The experience is concluded by a long and soft toasted oak finish.”

Bottom Line:

This sounds delicious from the tasting notes. I’ll have to get my hands on a bottle to see how many of those notes are actually there. I’m guessing a fair few given 15 Stars’ rising reputation.

291 Colorado Bourbon Whiskey Finished with Aspen Staves Barrel Proof, Single Barrel

ABV: 68.4%

Average Price: $108

The Whiskey:

This Colorado whiskey is very young, all things considered. The juice ages for about one year in barrels with toasted Aspen staves in the barrel to amp up the aging process from the inside. The whiskey is then bottled as-is with no proofing or fussing.

Tasting Notes:

You get a big note of banana bread on the nose with plenty of walnut, brown sugar, cinnamon, and a dash of cloves that lead to freshly cut firewood laying in black dirt with a whisper of potpourri in the background. The palate returns to the banana with hints of strawberries in straw, more dried florals, thick vanilla pudding, and plenty of brown sugar syrup. That sweet mid-palate gives way to raw leather, more of that dirty firewood, and a dusting of white pepper.

Bottom Line:

This is just a fascinating pour. It feels young on the nose but ends a little bit old and gnarled. It’s a fun ride.

Barrel King Straight Bourbon Whiskey

ABV: 61.05%

Average Price: $140

The Whiskey:

These whiskeys are from hand-selected sourced barrels. Those barrels are sent out to Bourbon, Missouri where they’re bottled as-is, generally for private barrel picks but also for the brand’s own shop.

Tasting Notes (from the Ascot Awards):

“A sweet and savory combination of chocolate, baking spices, and a hint of bitter oak on the finish is perfectly balanced and well-integrated. Nicely done!”

Bottom Line:

First of all, I need to go to Bourbon, Missouri ASAP. Secondly, I need to drop in this bottler when I’m there to give this juice a try. I’ll report back when I do.

Barrell Bourbon Batch 030

ABV: 57.94%

Average Price: $93

The Whiskey:

2021’s Barrell Batch 030 launched the brand’s awesome blends into a new direction by adding Wyoming bourbon alongside Kentucky, Indiana, and Tennessee whiskeys. The final mix ended up being a blend of five, six, nine, ten, eleven, and 15-year-old bourbons that were bottled at barrel proof.

Tasting Notes:

The nose opens with a plum pudding brimming with dark, wintry spice, dried and candied fruits, and fatty nuts that’s all been soaked in dark rum with a hint of worn library leather that leads towards this dramatic shift towards fresh blackberries and raspberries with a hint of the bramble. The palate is blackberry pie with a lard crust topped with a cinnamon vanilla ice cream next to hints of oatmeal raisin cookie, ancho-chili-laced dark chocolate, and dry walnut shells. The mid-palate harnesses that chocolate and nuttiness and leans it toward creamy Nutella as a dry pine arrives on the very end with an almost bitter dark soil.

Bottom Line:

If you see this on the shelf, buy two. One for everyday sipping and one for down the road when that first bottle is long gone and you want to revisit this because it isn’t coming back.

Blue Note Juke Joint Uncut Whiskey

ABV: 62.25%

Average Price: $40

The Whiskey:

This sourced whiskey comes from Kentucky. The juice is a blend of 70 percent corn, 21 percent rye, and nine percent malted barley whiskey that’s aged for up to four years before proofing and bottling.

Tasting Notes:

This smells like “bourbon” on the nose with hints of caramel, vanilla, oak, and a dollop of maple syrup. The palate has a thick winter spice vibe with dusty cinnamon and nutmeg-heavy eggnog with a creamy edge next to vanilla tobacco with a whisper of cedar humidor. That spice really amps up toward the finish with a Red Hot tobacco chew and dry wicker finish.

Bottom Line:

This is one that just hasn’t hit with me yet. I feel like I need to revisit it (again) to see what all the fuss is about. I know my editor — a vanilla fiend — is a big fan.

Bluegrass Distillers Single Barrel KY Straight Blue Corn Bourbon

ABV: 57.25%

Average Price: $60

The Whiskey:

This is a true outlier in Kentucky’s bourbon scene. The mash is made up of Kentucky-grown blue corn, 75 percent of it, alongside 21 percent wheat and a mere four percent malted barley. That whiskey then ages for an undisclosed amount of time before it’s bottled at barrel strength.

Tasting Notes (from the distiller):

“Nose: caramel, vanilla, oak. Pallet [sic]: sweet toffee, butterscotch, baking spice, banana bread. Finish: Medium with notes of sweet butter, corn, and cream.”

Bottom Line:

The tasting notes had me until “butterscotch” and “banana bread.” Those notes signal that this is a young and crafty bourbon. That’s not a bad thing. But for $60, I can assuredly buy some classic whiskeys on this very list that will be my jam.

Bulleit Barrel Strength

ABV: 59.5%

Average Price: $92

The Whiskey:

This is the standard Bulleit but with a little more dialed-in flavor profile that allows the juice to shine on its own. The sourced bourbon is small-batched from hand-selected barrels and bottled at Diageo’s new Bulleit facility without any filtration or cutting down to proof.

Tasting Notes:

These will vary depending on which release you snag. Expect sweet woody notes next to oily vanilla and a big note of black pepper. The taste delivers ripe peaches next to more peppery spice and a hint of Christmas spices, with the vanilla taking a backseat and the oak really stepping in to shine. The end is spicy, hot, oaky, and peachy, with a hint of caramel corn.

Bottom Line:

These are pretty damn good. I haven’t had one since late last year, but it really was a classic and easy-drinking bourbon, especially on a rock or two.

Bulleit Single Barrel

ABV: 52%

Average Price: $63

The Whiskey:

This is the same high-rye source bourbon as above. The key difference is that this is a single barrel (so not a small-batch). And even though the proof is lower on this, it’s still uncut and unfiltered.

Tasting Notes:

That now-classic Bulleit vibe of winter spices, deep caramel, rich vanilla, and soft leather draws you in on the nose. Woody maple syrup, faint dried roses, dates, eggnog with plenty of nutmeg, and creamy vanilla sauce all mingle on the palate. The sweet and creamy mid-palate gives way to dry wicker with hints of old pipe tobacco dipped in that eggnog.

Bottom Line:

This is straightforward but kind of deep. This really shines as a sipper with a single rock. Or — since this is fairly well-priced — you can build one hell of a cocktail with this thanks to the richness of the vanilla, caramel, and dry woodiness.

Cedar Ridge Single Barrel Collection #2

ABV: 61.1%

Average Price: $70

The Whiskey:

Murphy Quint, Cedar Ridge’s Head Distiller, started selecting single barrels from their rickhouse for this exclusive series last year. This version was bottled from Barrel 16.430 and but in glass as-is without any fussing whatsoever.

Tasting Notes (from the Ascot Awards):

“Dangerously smooth at this high ABV, here we have a whiskey with a rich mouthfeel and flavors of peanut butter, roses, and candied licorice. This is great!”

Bottom Line:

I love funky and odd combinations on a crafty whiskey and “peanut butter, roses, and candied licorice” is exactly that. I’m looking forward to digging into this one once I get my hands on one.

Cinder & Smoke 16 Year

ABV: 50%

Average Price: Coming Soon

The Whiskey:

Beyond the fact that this is a sourced bourbon blended by The Bard Distillery in Kentucky, not much else is available about what’s actually in the bottle.

Tasting Notes (from the Ascot Awards):

“Chocolate, vanilla, and graham cracker s’mores! YUM!”

Bottom Line:

This feels like I bottle that I’d come across at a trade show or judging one of these events and then never, ever see or hear of again.

Cutwater Spirits Bourbon Whiskey

ABV: 45%

Average Price: $50

The Whiskey:

Cutwater is all about that blend. The juice in this bottle is a mix of hand-selected barrels from undisclosed sources, ages, and places. That makes this a “Blended Bourbon Whiskey” if you want to get all technical about it.

Tasting Notes:

White summer flowers, soft vanilla, and a hint of orange zest lead the way on the nose with touches of caramel and oak. The palate is largely the same, offering a “classic” mixing bourbon vibe. The caramel and vanilla really dominate the palate with hints of citrus, dark spices, and wet wood. The finish is short and sweet with a touch more spice and vanilla.

Bottom Line:

This really feels like it was made to be mixed in an old fashioned.

Daviess County French Oak Finish

ABV: 48%

Average Price: $54

The Whiskey:

This sourced bourbon from Lux Row is a blend of wheated and rye-heavy bourbons. Those barrels are blended and then filled into French oak casks for a final six-month maturation. That whiskey is proofed and bottled without any fussing.

Tasting Notes:

This feels like descending into a cellar from the jump with cobwebs, a dry dirt floor, old cellar beams, dried flowers, a hint of rusty iron, and a whisper of grape must. The palate builds on that grape must with oatmeal raisin cookies with ground walnuts and plenty of nutmeg as a hint of pear candy sweetens the mid-palate. A hint of anise arrives late and leads to wet oak staves, more of that cellar floor, and a tiny dash of dried chili pepper.

Bottom Line:

This kind of rules. It’s unique, funky, and still somehow grounded in a bourbon-ness. If you’re looking for something completely outside the box but still understandable/enjoyable, this is the bottle to grab.

Doc Swinson’s Blenders Cut Bourbon

ABV: 57.5%

Average Price: $65

The Whiskey:

Doc Swinson’s Master Blender, Jesse Parker, takes a lot of time making this whiskey. The juice is a blend of MGP five-year-old bourbons. That blend is just touched with water to bring it down to 155 proof and then bottled.

Tasting Notes:

This opens with a nice balance of dried and leathery apricot next to Caro syrup and peanut brittle with a hint of charred oak in the background of the nose. The palate leans into the nuttiness with an almost Almond Joy vibe with a dark chocolate bitterness and a touch of creamy vanilla. The finish is part brown sugar and part crushed peanuts with a hint of spicy dark chocolate tobacco rounding things out.

Bottom Line:

It’s not every day that you get a nice and nutty bourbon like this. While this doesn’t feel overly unique, it has enough of its own character to be memorable, especially over a rock or two.

Doc Swinson’s Exploratory Cask El Cuerpo

ABV: 57%

Average Price: $85

The Whiskey:

El Cuerpo, or “The Body,” is a five-year-old sourced bourbon. The juice is finished in Pedro Ximenez sherry butts to add more depth to the MGP juice before bottling.

Tasting Notes (from the blender):

“NOSE – Leather, ripe plums, dark chocolate, and vanilla. PALATE – Dark stewed fruits, honey, marzipan, custard, aged tobacco, bourbon vanilla, and stewed plums. FINISH – A rich and full-bodied bourbon with satisfying vanilla, fruit leather, and wet tobacco that cling to the palate.”

Bottom Line:

This sounds like a delicious bourbon, especially for winter sipping.

Doc Swinson’s Exploratory Cask L’Esprit

ABV: 57%

Average Price: $85

For this release, Doc Swinon’s blenders built a whiskey around “The Spirit.” To do so, they finished five-year-old MGP bourbon in Cognac puncheons (larger barrels) for a final spell before bottling.

The Whiskey:

Tasting Notes (from the blender):

“NOSE – Orange marmalade, Soda bread, citrus, and marzipan. PALATE – Golden raisins, wildflower honey, dark chocolate, dried tobacco, crème brûlée, and candied orange peels. FINISH – Exceptional balance of sweet and citrus notes, a smooth sipping bourbon with a toasted oak finish.”

Bottom Line:

With all of that citrus, this sounds more like a spring/summer sipper.

Doc Swinson’s Exploratory Cask La Mente

ABV: 57%

Average Price: $85

The Whiskey:

For “The Mind,” a whiskey was created to challenge the mind. The five-year-old MGP barrels were batched and refilled into Oloroso sherry casks for a final maturation before bottling.

Tasting Notes (from the blender):

“NOSE – Holiday spice cake, almond paste, orange zest, and wildflower honey. PALATE – Dried apricots, candied citrus peels, roasted nuts, and baking spices. FINISH – An uplifting and fragrant bourbon full of seasonal fruits and citrus peels followed by honey and toasted oak.”

Bottom Line:

This feels like a bottle that bridges the last two’s holidays and spring/summer vibe as an all-around great whiskey.

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof A122

ABV: 60.4%

Average Price: $130

The Whiskey:

This year’s first drop is a 12-year-old whiskey made from Heaven Hill’s classic bourbon mash of 78 percent corn, 12 percent malted barley, and a mere ten percent rye. Those barrels are masterfully blended into this Barrel Proof expression with no cutting or fussing. This is as-is bourbon from the barrel.

Tasting Notes:

Caramel draws you in on the nose with a slight sourdough cinnamon roll with pecans, a touch of floral honey, and a soft and woody drug store aftershave with an echo of vanilla candle wax and singed marshmallow. The palate rolls through a soft leather and vanilla pie note as cinnamon ice cream leads to spicy oak. The mid-palate leans into a sweeter, almost creamy spice (think nutmeg-heavy eggnog) which, in turn, leads to a dry cedar bark next to a dry stewed-apple tobacco leaf folded into an old leather pouch for safekeeping.

Bottom Line:

This is one of the better barrel proof whiskeys of the year, so far. It’s such a dailed-in stonecold classic that it’s hard to beat.

Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel

ABV: 47%

Average Price: $126

The Whiskey:

This new expression from the brand uses classic Elijah Craig Small Batch and gives it a finishing maturation. Basically, the aged juice is transferred to toasted oak barrels for a spell so that the whiskey can really capture more of that oakiness.

Tasting Notes:

Naturally, you get a woodiness on the nose that teeters between soft cedar and sweet, almost fruity hardwoods, with a hint of caramel sweetness as a counterpoint. That caramel has a somewhat orange-chocolate edge with hints of clove, cinnamon, and white pepper lurking in the background. The spices dry out (think cinnamon sticks or spice barks), the sweetness subsides, and you’re left with a touch of that soft cedar and some well-warmed senses.

Bottom Line:

This is a good entry point to toasted barrel finishes, especially if you can get it MSRP (which is closer to $50). It makes for a good sipper that works wonders in a cocktail too.

Gentle Ben Cask Strength Straight Bourbon Whiskey

ABV: 58.5%

Average Price: Coming Soon

The Whiskey:

This bottling from Persedo Spirits is a three-year-old crafty. Beyond that, very little information is available on what’s actually in the bottle.

Tasting Notes (from the Ascot Awards):

“Rich flavors of maple syrup, pecan pie, and cherry cordial, meets a great mouthfeel, pleasant tannins, and a long finish. What’s not to love?”

Bottom Line:

This sounds nice. But given that it’s going to be super hard to find, it might not be worth the effort unless you’re in Alvin, Texas.

Heaven Hill Select Stock 13-Year-Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Finished in Chinquapin Barrels

ABV: 55%

Average Price: Coming Soon

The Whiskey:

This expression is part of Heaven Hill’s Heritage Center only line. The juice is classic Heaven Hill bourbon that’s aged for over a decade before being re-barreled in Chinquapin white oak barrels for a final maturation.

Tasting Notes (from the Ascot Awards):

“A bready nose leads to baked coffee cake on the palate with a long finish. Distinctive in a good way. Excellent.”

Bottom Line:

This is one of those whiskeys you take home after a tour of the factory and then wow your family and friends with at backyard BBQs and birthday parties over the next year.

Jefferson’s Reserve

ABV: 45.1%

Average Price: $40

The Whiskey:

Jefferson’s really hits it out of the park with their sourced juice. The “very old” element of this small-batched blend means that eight to 12 barrels of four unique bourbons were selected to be married, with the oldest clocking in at 20-years-old. That juice is then proofed with soft Kentucky limestone water to bring it down to a very approachable 90.2 proof.

Tasting Notes:

This is classic. Notes of vanilla meet spicy tobacco, leather, oak, and very buttery toffee with a hint of popped corn and apple pie mingle on the nose. The palate holds true to those notes while adding a mellow cherry with an almost cedar-infused cream soda. The finish is short but full of all those woody, spicy, and apple pie notes again, with plenty of buttery mouthfeel and a cedar box full of rich tobacco leaves.

Bottom Line:

This is a fine bourbon. It’s an easy sipper but doesn’t quite pack the punch I was looking for.

King’s Family Distillery Wheated Bourbon

ABV: 57.9%

Average Price: $55

The Whiskey:

This is a very wheated bourbon. The mash is 51 percent corn (the legal minimum) plus 45 percent wheat and four percent malted barley. That juice is left to rest for four years before it’s blended out and bottled as-is.

Tasting Notes (from the distiller):

“King’s Wheated Bourbon is subtle and earthy, with rich notes of caramel and butterscotch, plus a touch of cinnamon, with a soft, wheaty finish. We recommend it for a bourbon drinker who prefers Maker’s, the Weller lineup, or Blanton’s.”

Bottom Line:

This bourbon sounds pretty rich but young (that butterscotch cannot be denied). Whether it stands up to a Weller or Maker’s is a big swing.

Kings County Distillery 7-Year Bourbon

ABV: 48%

Average Price: $70

The Whiskey:

This is craft bourbon is one of the older crafty bourbons from outside Kentucky. The juice is from their 80 percent corn and 20 percent malted barley mash bill. It spends a long seven years resting before batching, proofing, and bottling.

Tasting Notes:

Toffee covered in milk chocolate leads the way on the nose with hints of peanut shells and pine. The palate is close to the nose while layering in orange rind, vanilla tobacco, and a dose of winter spices. The finish softly balances those peanut shells with pine resin, burnt orange, and a final note of that milk chocolate and toffee.

Bottom Line:

The last time I tried this, I didn’t think all that much of it. It looks like it’s time for a revisit.

Middle West Spirits Straight Wheated Bourbon Michelone Reserve Cask Strength

ABV: 63.95%

Average Price: $47

The Whiskey:

This Ohio whiskey is all about grain-to-glass. The juice is made from a mash of sweet yellow corn, soft red winter wheat, dark pumpernickel rye, and Two-Row malted barley. The whiskey spends about four years in oak before it’s bottled as-is at cask strength.

Tasting Notes:

Coconut cream pie dominates the nose with a lard crust, a touch of black banana, and almond-covered toffees round things out. The palate leans into the creaminess of the pie while adding in soft dried fruits, a touch of winter spice, and a whisper of cedar. The finish arrives with a Honey Nut Cheerios vibe as the wintry spices amp up toward a warm end.

Bottom Line:

I always need to throw a rock in the glass with this to calm down those ABVs. After that, there’s a lot in the whiskey worth savoring.

Moylan’s Cask Strength Bourbon

ABV: 56%

Average Price: $47

The Whiskey:

Moylan’s is crafty bourbon from Stillwater Spirits in Petaluma, California. This four-year-old whiskey is finished in French Chardonnay barrels before it’s bottled at cask strength.

Tasting Notes (from the distiller):

“Aromatics of rich vanilla and fresh toasted coconut conquer the nose with a soft oaky notion. The brilliant golden-amber hue promises a delicious, elegant complexity of faint coffee bean and restrained citrus sweetness.”

Bottom Line:

This sounds like a good bourbon to look up if you’re in Sonoma and tired of all the wine.

Moylan’s Over-Regulated Blended Bourbon Whisky Finished in Port Barrels

ABV: 46%

Average Price: Limited Availability

The Whiskey:

This is a blend of two-year-old bourbons. This time, the whiskey is filled into Sonoma Portworks port barrels for a final maturation.

Tasting Notes (from the distiller):

“Aromatics of rich vanilla and fresh toasted chocolate conquer the nose with a soft Oakey notion. The brilliant golden-amber hue promises a delicious, elegant complexity of faint coffee bean and restrained port-like sweetness.”

Bottom Line:

Again, this is something I’ll look up the next time I’m in Sonoma. But I’m not going to go out of my way to track it down outside of California.

Nashville Barrel Co. Single Barrel Straight Bourbon Whiskey

ABV: 58.98%

Average Price: